Need a break from the winter blahs? Try Barcelona

By Bob Blanton

Published: Friday, December 28, 2012 at 06:22 PM.

The Basilica of Sagrada Familia

Antonio Gaudi left his indelible mark on Barcelona with his Basilica of Sagrada Familia (Holy Family), the singular icon of the city’s architecture today. The downtown basilica has been revered by surrealists and modernistas in Catalunya, who considered Gaudi one of their own, and reviled by critics who consider it “one of the ugliest buildings in the world.”

By the time Gaudi got involved in its construction in 1883, the plans had already been drawn up by another architect. However, Gaudi redesigned the structure with his own style and personal touches. By 1910, he completely abandoned all his other works and focused entirely on “La Sagrada Familia.”

Gaudi died of a tragic accident in 1926 while in his 70s. Before his death, his critics asked him how long the structure would take to complete. In typical Gaudi fashion, he remarked “My client is not in a hurry.”

His “client” was God.

More than a century later, the immense structure is still a work in progress. It is expected to be completed by 2026.

Having visited the basilica many times over the years with the interior nave as a construction zone, this visit was the first time I have ever felt that I was in a sacred space. I and many of my 18 tour members were moved to tears by the quiet sanctity and majestic proportions of the basilica, now recognizable as a church — not just a jumble of ladders, scaffolding and building materials.

Ask the typical American traveler about the ideal location for mid-winter travel and you’ll hear places like the Caribbean, Mexico and Hawaii. One destination that is often overlooked, however, is the coastal region of the Mediterranean Sea, which includes southern Italy, Greece and coastal Spain.

Art lovers who travel to Spain are usually familiar with the great artists who lived and worked in Barcelona, including Pablo Picasso, Jean Miro and Antonio Gaudi. But there is much more to Barcelona, a major Mediterranean port that rivals Madrid as the country’s most populated urban area.

The history of the city is rich and complicated, with an origin dating back to around 250 B.C., when Hannibal’s brother, Hamilcar Barca, founded the port city, then known as “Barcino.”

From that time on, Barcelona was popular with Greek sailors, Carthaginian merchants and the Romans, who conquered the city around 200 B.C. Barcelona was also conquered by the North African Muslim invaders in 800 A.D. All these invaders left their mark on the city and its culture.

Not surprisingly, Barcelona’s cuisine is a mixture of its many different conquerors and inhabitants. On our college study tours’ week-long trip, we visited a famous cooking school in the city and learned to prepare the iconic dish of the region, seafood paella. What we thought would be a simple meal turned into a four-course extravaganza, with a fresh tomato soup appetizer, our version of a Catalan tortilla (not at all like our version of a tortilla, but more like a potato quiche), the main course of paella, and Catalan crème cremada (Crème brulee) for dessert.

One bit of historical trivia that caught our attention was the fact that when Christopher Columbus made his return voyage back to Spain after his first successful visit to the New World, he docked in Barcelona, where he was received by the Christian monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. This explains the huge column and statue of the explorer down near the waterfront in the city.

As we began our long flight from Barcelona to Miami and on to Charlotte, we reminisced about the friendly Catalonians, the balmy weather, the incredible architecture, and the outstanding food and drink that we had experienced. Our heads were also filled with new information about the history and culture of one of Europe’s most cosmopolitan and beautiful cities.

The Basilica of Sagrada Familia

Antonio Gaudi left his indelible mark on Barcelona with his Basilica of Sagrada Familia (Holy Family), the singular icon of the city’s architecture today. The downtown basilica has been revered by surrealists and modernistas in Catalunya, who considered Gaudi one of their own, and reviled by critics who consider it “one of the ugliest buildings in the world.”

By the time Gaudi got involved in its construction in 1883, the plans had already been drawn up by another architect. However, Gaudi redesigned the structure with his own style and personal touches. By 1910, he completely abandoned all his other works and focused entirely on “La Sagrada Familia.”

Gaudi died of a tragic accident in 1926 while in his 70s. Before his death, his critics asked him how long the structure would take to complete. In typical Gaudi fashion, he remarked “My client is not in a hurry.”

His “client” was God.

More than a century later, the immense structure is still a work in progress. It is expected to be completed by 2026.

Having visited the basilica many times over the years with the interior nave as a construction zone, this visit was the first time I have ever felt that I was in a sacred space. I and many of my 18 tour members were moved to tears by the quiet sanctity and majestic proportions of the basilica, now recognizable as a church — not just a jumble of ladders, scaffolding and building materials.

–Bob Blanton

Bob Blanton is Director of Study Tours at Gaston College, a position he has held for 34 years. The next college study tour will be a return to mainland China in May 2013.